Goal: Recognize this dedicated defender of women’s rights for her bravery and maturity in responding to derogatory comments

When 14-year-old Tuesday Cain, artist, budding activist, and citizen of Austin, Texas, recently joined her parents at the now-famous protest against Texas’s anti-abortion bill outside the state Capitol building, she probably didn’t know what to expect, but she showed up prepared with a sign that read “Jesus isn’t a dick; so keep him out of my vagina!” After a photo of her friend holding the sign inside the Capitol’s rotunda made its way into the limelight of the internet, Tuesday and her parents became the subject of derogatory and rude comments from anti-abortion zealots who deemed the family “‘pro-abortion fanatics'” and the sign “‘vile'” and “‘vulgar.'”

Some went even further, as one man at the protest screamed in the girls’ faces, “‘You’re ugly!'” and still others online wrote of Tuesday that she was a “‘whore.'” In the face of all this harassment, including comments suggesting the Cains were abusive or “‘failures'” as parents, Tuesday’s father stood strong, responding to comments on Twitter and ultimately composing an extraordinarily thoughtful piece for The Guardian, entitled “I’m proud of my daughter’s abortion bill placard, despite the backlash,” to defend his daughter’s brave protest.

But it is Tuesday’s own response to the backlash that proves most poignant; in an article for xoJane, she writes about her reasons for making the sign and attending the protest, her pride in her father for defending her, and her disappointment in the responses of “[a]dults [who] are not acting like adults.” By signing this petition, you are showing Tuesday Cain and young people like her, who are passionate about defending women’s reproductive rights and protesting injustices where they see them, that their struggle is important and that they are supported by a network of individuals who are just as passionate and caring.

PETITION LETTER:

Dear Tuesday,

Your decision to take action against the anti-abortion bill in your home state, to create a sign and stand in protest outside of the Capitol, was extremely courageous and inspiring. I hope you know that for every person who yelled or posted a rude or derogatory comment about your sign or your body, there are plenty more who applaud your bravery and stand in solidarity with your protest. I am among those reading in awe of your calm, mature response to those too small-minded to understand your fantastic goal of defending women’s reproductive rights.

Thank you so much for educating yourself about reproductive rights abuses, and for taking this knowledge to its practical conclusion of direct action. Thank you for stepping up and becoming a role model for young people everywhere who care about these important human rights issues.

Sincerely,

[Your Name Here]

Photo credit: scATX via Flickr.

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